Working with templates

When we start to develop a document, we specify the document class, choose meaningful packages and options, and create a frame for the contents. To repeat these steps for each document would be too laborious.

If we plan to write several documents of the same type, we may create a template. This could be a .tex file containing:

• Declaration of a suitable document class together with a set of meaningful options

• Routinely-used packages and packages which are most eligible for our document type

• A predefined layout for header, footer, and body of the text

• Self-made macros to ease our work

• A framework of sectioning commands, where we fill in the headings and the body text

• Or a framework containing \include or \input commands, for which we create the body text chunks later on.

While we improve our LaTeX knowledge, such templates might grow and become better and more sophisticated. Many users publish their elaborate templates on the Internet. Many universities, institutes, journals...